Elder DeLong Pukes on the Chapel Floor

...yeah. I did. It wasn't very fun. Storytime! Monday evening, I made dinner for Elder Johnson and myself. I think there may have been a bad can of cream of mushroom soup, but whatever the cause, Elder Johnson woke up Tuesday morning with food poisoning. He had bad diarrhea and when I asked him how he felt, he staggered back into the bathroom and threw up. I felt fine, and we had zone conference that day, which I didn't want to miss. The Spirit prompted me to stay back and take care of my companion, but I rationalized myself out of it. The APs had asked me to play the piano, plus, I love seeing old missionary friends and being spiritually fed. So, in a moment of selfishness, I called our district leader and asked for an exchange so that I could go. He and I went to zone conference, and his companion stayed with Elder Johnson as he slept. I was doing well, played the piano for prelude and everything, but towards the end of the first speaker, I felt a light wave of nausea. I panicked, realizing that I was probably sick, too. But again, my selfish desires demanded that I NOT miss this meeting. I fought it down, and was fine for a few minutes. A second rush of nausea came, and I again triumphed over it with will power. The third time, though, the Spirit nudged me as if to say, "You should probably get up now." I finally humbled myself and listened - I got up and calmly walked out of the chapel...but didn't make it to a trash can in time. I was behind the last row of pews, on my way out the door, when I vomited the contents of my stomach onto the floor...twice. A fellow Elder jumped up and grabbed my arm, yanking me down the hallway to the bathroom, puking as I went. Several senior missionaries cleaned up my mess and one of them (the mission doctor) helped me clean myself up. Let's just say that my suit had to get dry cleaned, but only after it got "wet" cleaned. I was more embarrassed than anything else, to be honest. The meeting went on after a brief pause as if nothing happened, and I laid down on the couch at the request of Dr./Elder Aldous. My district leader and zone leaders gave me a blessing, and then took me back home, where we switched back and the 4 of them went back to the meeting after giving Elder Johnson a blessing. He was amused by what had happened to me, and I got over the embarrassment. However, I was greatly humbled that day. Not only had I puked in front of my mission president, his family, the chapel's ward's bishop, and about 100 other missionaries, but I ignored a prompting from the Spirit and instead followed my own selfish desires. I knew they would have someone else to play the piano, but I wanted to do it. I knew I would be able to hear about the zone conference later, but I wanted to be there for it. I knew I would be able to see my fellow missionaries another time, but I wanted to go anyway. I didn't listen, and I paid the price for it. Elder Johnson forgave me, and we spent the rest of that day and part of Wednesday sleeping. We recovered enough to eat toast and then later some Ramen noodles in the afternoon on Wednesday, and felt better by 5 or 6 PM, so we went out to our appointments. The Lord will always find ways to humble us, even if it has to be through food poisoning. =P

That all being said, we actually had a really great week after the "gastrointestinal illness" episode. We had a fantastic lesson with Sopheak on the Plan of Salvation, and we got a brand new investigator for the YSA ward. Her name is Meredith, and she's been coming to church with a couple of her friends in the ward. She's definitely one of those "gift" investigators! She's been so prepared and is very ready for the gospel. I'm very excited to be teaching her, and I'm happy for the changes she's already making in her life. She expressed her excitement to read the Book of Mormon, she prayed at the end of the lesson, she accepted a baptismal date, AND she showed her faith by asking us for a blessing. It was an awesome experience. I've said it before and I stand by it still: feeling the love of our Heavenly Father for another one of His children is a life-changing thing. =]

This weekend, we moved the Portuguese Elders into our apartment, so now, there's 4 of us living there. It was comfortable with 2, but with all 4 of us there, it's cramped. It hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be, although my snoring (which hasn't bothered the heavy sleeper, Elder Johnson) has driven Elder Maldonado to buy ear plugs. I've also developed a cold within the past couple of days, which doesn't help with the whole breathing-through-my-nose thing. I'm not about to let some sniffles and sinus headaches hinder the work of the Lord, though! =D

As of Friday, I've been in the mission field for an entire year. I can't decide if it feels longer or shorter than that...either way, my time in the mission field is slowly dwindling away. However, I still have quite a bit of time left, and I'm determined to give the Lord all I have and more in that time. I'm so thankful for this opportunity to serve as a full-time missionary, for the chance to help others, and for the transformations that are occurring in my own life.

With love,
Elder DeLong